Benzoic acid

What the evidence says

• Can form benzene with vitamin CStrong evidence

  Benzoates can form small amounts of benzene in drinks that also contain ascorbic acid (vitamin C), especially with heat or light. [1]

Evidence tiers say how sure the evidence is, separately from how much it matters. About evidence tiers.

Rules around the world

“Banned” means explicitly prohibited or withdrawn after review; “not permitted” means never authorized there. We use each regulator’s own words.

Popular products that list benzoic acid

26 of the 17,000 most-scanned products in the US with a GoodSwap page list benzoic acid. The 12 most scanned:

• Zero Ultra Monster Energy · 1 can (16 oz) Score 51 out of 100 Okay
• Tortillas Mission · 25 oz Score 64 out of 100 Good
• Monster Energy Monster · 16 oz Score 10 out of 100 Bad
• Yellow Corn Tortillas Mission · 16 oz Score 64 out of 100 Good
• White Corn Tortillas La Banderita · 16 oz Score 66 out of 100 Good
• Street Tacos White Corn Tortillas Mission · 24 count / 12.6 oz / 357 g Score 64 out of 100 Good
• Yellow Corn Tortillas Mission · 25 oz Score 64 out of 100 Good
• Corn Tortillas La Bonita · 24.9 oz/705 g Score 87 out of 100 Excellent
• Yellow Corn Tortillas Mission · 10.84 oz Score 66 out of 100 Good
• White Corn Tortillas Guerrero Score 65 out of 100 Good
• White Corn Tortillas Guerrero · 47 g Score 61 out of 100 Good
• Monster Energy Zero Sugar Monster · 16 oz Score 46 out of 100 Okay

Diets and allergens

Vegan

Yes

Vegetarian

Yes

Gluten-free

Yes

For the ingredient in general. Always check the package: a product’s own labels win.